Effects of a high-fat meal on the relative oral bioavailability of piperaquine

Piperaquine (PQ) is an antimalarial drug whose high lipid solubility suggests that its absorption can be increased by a high-fat meal. We examined the pharmacokinetics of PQ phosphate (500 mg given orally) in the fasting state and after a high-fat meal in eight healthy Caucasian volunteers (randomized crossover). Plasma PQ concentration-time profiles were analyzed by using noncompartmental pharmacokinetic analysis. In the fed state, the geometric mean C-max increased by 213%, from 21.0 to 65.8 mu g/liter (P < 0.001). The time of C-max was not significantly different between the fasting and fed states. The geometric mean area under the concentration-time curve from zero onward (AUC(0-infinity)) increased by 98%, from 3,724 to 7,362 mu g h/liter (P = 0.006). The oral bioavailability of PQ relative to the fasting state was 121% greater after the high-fat meal (95% confidence interval, 26 to 216% increase; P = 0.020). The side effects, postural blood pressure changes, electrocardiographic corrected QT interval, serum glucose, and other biochemical and hematological indices were similar in the fasting and fed states over 28 days of follow-up.